Many of Florida's poor children not getting dental care

Florida's low-income children are among the least likely in the nation to receive dental care, according to a new Pew Charitable Trusts report.

The "In Search of Dental Care" report, released June 25, ranks the Sunshine State as having America's eighth highest rate of underserved kids when compared to available dentists, a problem exacerbated by the dearth of private providers accepting Medicaid.

In 2011, 76 percent of Florida's Medicaid-enrolled children did not receive regular dental care — the highest rate in the country. In 2010, just 15 percent of Florida's dentists accepted the public insurance plan for the poor, according to the report.

The lack of care has serious repercussions, both for the children and the American health-care system, because dental health often deteriorates to the point where the emergency room is for many their only recourse, the report said.

It's a sad scenario Dr. Romer Ocanto is wholly familiar with.

"We know from our patients this is true. Very few dentists take care of these children," said Ocanto, chairman of the Department of Pediatric Dentistry at Nova Southeastern University's College of Dental Medicine, which runs several clinics that serve poor children.

The problem, Ocanto and others say, is Medicaid's poor reimbursement rate for dental care. The rates vary from state to state, "and Florida has one of the lowest ones," making it unaffordable for most dentists to treat Medicaid patients, Ocanto said.

Unlike other parts of the state, especially more rural areas, South Florida does not suffer from a shortage of available dentists, just those that accept Medicaid. But Broward and Palm Beach counties have a number of options for low-income children without private insurance.

The Broward County Health Department has four public dental clinics that see only children, and Ocanto said NSU operates three clinics that serve low-income and special-needs children.

Palm Beach County's Health Department runs six dental clinics throughout the county, and has for the past 30 years saturated the public school system with free sealant and fluoride programs that serve thousands of children every year, said Dr. Phil Bilger, the agency's longtime dental director.

Another service, the "Save A Molar" program, sponsored by eight private practice endodontists in Palm Beach County, provides teens with root canals, allowing them to save teeth that would otherwise have to be extracted, said health department spokesman Tim O'Connor.

"There are some options" in South Florida, Ocanto said. "Unfortunately, there's only so much we can do."

For more information on available dental care services for low-income children:

In Broward County, call the health department dental administration at 954-467-4700, ext. 5176, or go to browardchd.org/dental.aspx; or to schedule an appointment at one of Nova Southeastern University's dental clinics, call 954-NSU-CARE.